Music is all fun and games till you start taking it seriously, as a means to an end, or maybe even a full-time job. It’s a known fact that 9ja is blessed with talent, lots of of it. It’s also an undisputed fact that not up to 1% of these talents ever taste the lime-light. While it’s obvious that a lot of these cats got what it takes, you wonder why they not making it. Leaving us to question, what didn’t they get right?

The industry seems crowded, no doubt about it. In the famous words of Terry tha Rapman, “…every body and him papa wan rap.” But like they say, the ocean is big enough for all fish, the sky is big enough for the birds to fly. Coz every year sees some other artists rising from obscurity to basking in fame.

Music like every other art is subjective. What works for Tom might not work for Dick and might just be all Harry needs. I see a lot of dope rappers everyday with more swag than jay z and more punchlines than modenine, yet they remain either unrecognised or getting ripped off one way or the other. In short they just not making it happen like they should. The reason isn’t far-fetched.

Let’s face it, rappers are either lazy or broke. You claim music is μ̥я̥ hustle yet you aint ready to put your money where your mouth is. If you don’t put in the extra work why should any one be ready to put they money on you, yet niggas be like “mehn this industry is messed up, only wack niggas be making it.” Nigga please! We all know excuses are for losers.

It’s especially sad when I see rappers that actually put in work but getting no result coz they doing it wrong and hustling backwards.
I’ve studied the business side of the music, and what i found- the problem is not the industry. If you go to MTN’s office and scream GLO with pride! You just might get the same treatment you getting right now. Coz you doing it wrong.

To be continued.

Ok. Now that we got all that out of the way, I guess it now begs the question, how can you get It right, right? I aint gonna lie, I don’t hold all the chips, and nothing worthwhile comes cheap.

Like every business, you need to understand that your a brand or one in the making. A lot of effort should be put in making yourself look the part. You don’t see your pastor wearing timberland boots to church, it don’t go with the territory. Same way you gotta know what works for you and your hustle. It’s all about packaging.

No expense is spared in making quality music. You can record the verse of the year. On the wrong beat and poor studio production, it’s not gonna go far coz no one’s gonna play that shit.

You might not be ready for this but soon as you start gettin some money coming μ̥я̥ way, it’s time to get yourself some good manager. Coz that’s gonna be what separates you from every other cat out there and get you and μ̥я̥ music out where it should be heard.

This next one might seem to go against μ̥я̥ hip-hop “nigga with attitude” swag but to go far in this music business or any other business at that, you gotta be humble. Definitely not to everyone in the industry but there’s a few stake-holders that have been there, done that and can be the right platform to get you up the ladder. Name any of the biggest acts in the industry right now that didn’t pay their dues before they became relevant and consistent at the top. MI’s humility once made me change my specs. 2face probably never saw himself being as big as he turned out but we all saw how he slaved it for Kennis Music back in the day. That’s what we talking about people. You just gotta know when to drop the damn attitude.

Master your art and craft. In the classic words of DPrince, “identify your selling point!” You must know what’s in your goody bag coz you just have to know your selling point. You gotta bring something different on the table. You gotta have a story line about you, what defines your persona or act, something that’s gonna leave a memory of you and your music and get peepz talking about you. Good or bad. Bad always works better but that’s just keeping it real.

Practise. Rehearse. Perform.
And keep doing these over and over again.
You’ll find what works and what’s gotta go. Always be open to feedback from your team and listen to critics, especially from random people. But that don’t mean losing your own stand. A constructive criticism would only help you get better.
Get out there, push μ̥я̥ music and look for gigs, even free shows at schools and open mic sessions.

Never lose your self-confidence and as cocky as it sounds you have to believe it balls through bone that your the best and the next best thing that’s about to happen to the industry yo!

Another word that gets me all the time is Authenticity or Originality. I’m all about supporting that, but let’s face it nothing is 100% original. So don’t burden yourself trying to be so different and risk alienating everyone. One thing I found, people react to what they can relate to. A beat that sounds familiar, a story line they can easily sing along to. Ask P-square, they know all about this. Nobody in the end cares if you sampled someone as long as you do it right and you aint crossing the lines of copyright infringement. Subtlety is the key.
I think that’s pretty much all you should work with for now, any further development would have to be paid for, let’s face it you learnt a thing or two.
If after putting all these to work, your ish still don’t add up, please read between the lines and see that tiny little font that says “bros abeg go change your career.”

It's 2017, the industry is ripe for the next big thing. A good time to get on your grind and claim what's yours.
Get off your̥ butts and No+More+Buts!